Spring 2010 Undergraduate English Courses

ENGL 200. THE BUTLER DIDN'T DO IT: DETECTIVE FICTION. Cothran. This course will look at two centuries worth of fictional thefts and murders, as well as a host of quirky, crazy, charming, and brilliant detectives. Specifically, we will be looking at texts by Wilkie Collins, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Agatha Christie, Elizabeth George, Patricia Cornwell, and others. The class will explore the evolution of the detective character as a unique literary type and also get a sense of the historical development of the crime novel. In addition to a paper based on a mystery novel (of your choice) read outside of class, students will be required to take essay tests, a final exam, and will write at least one formal, researched critical essay. Three credits of ENGL 200 may be applied to undergraduate degrees in English. TR 9:30-10:45

ENGL 200. PARIS AND THE JAZZ AGE. Jordan. This course will focus on expatriate writers for whom Paris during the Jazz Age provided great inspiration. Consideration will be given to the intersection of cultures and to the influence of place on composition. A visit to Paris during Spring Break will function as an integral part of the experience, and students who register for the trip prior to November 4 will enjoy a guaranteed seat in the class. Those who elect not to travel may still take the course on a space available basis after travellers are enrolled and will receive alternative assignments. See Ms. Jordan for details. Three credits of ENGL 200 may be applied to undergraduate degrees in English. MW 2-3:15

ENGL 200. The Literature of War. Ely. The focus of this course will be war as portrayed in short works by Isabel Colgate, Michio Takeyama, Marc Dugain, Duong Thu Huong, Graham Greene, Erich Maria Remarque, Bohumil Hrabal , Martha Gelhorn, and Paul Fussel. The course will include fiction, non-fiction, and film connected with World Wars I &II and Vietnam, including I Served The King of England, The Empire of the Sun, and Under the Volcano. Three credits of ENGL 200 may be applied to undergraduate degrees in English. MW 12:30-1:45

ENGL 203:001.  MAJOR BRITISH AUTHORS. Fike.  A study of major British writers: Chaucer, Shakespeare, Milton, and representative figures from the Neoclassical, Romantic, Victorian, Modern, and Postmodern eras. We will attempt to represent the major literary genres and to get a sense of both the historical development of British culture and some major critical approaches to the works under study. TR 2-3:15

ENGL 203H. MAJOR BRITISH AUTHORS--Honors.  Brownson. A study of major British writers: Chaucer, Shakespeare, Milton, and representative figures from the Neoclassical, Romantic, Victorian, Modern, and Postmodern eras. We will attempt to represent the major literary genres and to get a sense of both the historical development of British culture and some major critical approaches to the works under study. MW 2-3:15

ENGL 208. FOUNDATIONS OF WORLD LITERATURE. Brownson. This course is designed to familiarize students with great works of world literature representing the Classical, Medieval, and Renaissance periods and also significant, chronologically comparable works from the Non-Western tradition. Students will engage in discussion, critical thinking, and analytical writing about diverse literary traditions and individual works. In addition to in-class writing, essay tests, and a final exam, students will be required to write at least one formal, researched critical essay. TR 12:30-1:45

ENGL 211. MAJOR AMERICAN AUTHORS. Childers. Study of the major periods, literary forms, and issues that characterize American literature, with a consideration of representative major works and authors over the course of American literary history. TR 2-3:15

ENGL 300. APPROACHES TO LITERATURE. DeRochi. This writing intensive course required of all English majors and minors introduces students to the evolving study of literary criticism.  The course covers critical approaches from the past and present as well as looks toward possible future developments in criticism.  We begin with a study of formalism and then move to detailed examinations of the dominant critical schools of the twentieth century, including reader response, psychoanalysis, structuralism, feminism, new historicism, deconstruction, gender studies, and postcolonialism.  Students choose a primary text on which to base their major written assignments – an annotated bibliography, a review of literature, a casebook, and a critical essay.  Other requirements include short essays and a cumulative final.  Textbooks support all aspects of the course and are a casebook made up of a primary work and five essays displaying varying critical approaches, an introduction to critical theory, the most current MLA handbook, and a handbook to literature. Note: Writing Intensive Course.  Restricted to English majors and minors.  Prerequisite: sophomore standing. MW 9:30-10:15

ENGL 303. GRAMMAR.  Jones. This course reviews traditional grammar with an emphasis on descriptive methodology (how our language functions) and introduces transformational and structuralist grammars. Students will be required to write a "problem" paper, take three exams, and prepare and teach a mini-lesson on some grammatical concept. Primarily intended for students planning to teach.  TR 8-9:15

ENGL 310. The Arthurian Tradition. Koster. An investigation of the Arthurian tradition from its earliest historical roots in Celtic Britain through its major literary and artistic representations up to the present century. In addition to works of literature, we will be exploring the Arthurian tradition in art, music, film, artifacts (not limited to the Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch), and other cultural media. Several in-class tests, a major out-of class paper, and a group oral presentation will be required. This course will count toward the Medieval Studies minor, which you can declare beginning in Fall 2010. TR 9:30-10:45

ENGL 312. AFRICAN AMERICAN LITERATURE. Bickford.  English 312 is a survey in African American literature exploring a representative sample of the body of African American works, beginning with the foundations in music and oral culture and progressing through the major cultural and literary periods of African American literary production. Emphasis will be placed on the trope of the trickster figure in the African American tradition, the connection between the history and the literature that results, the role of the African American artist, and whether or not there is such a thing as a Black Aesthetic. Prerequisite(s): ENGL 209 or 210 or 211 or AAMS 300 or permission of instructor. Notes: Cross-listed with AAMS 318. R 6:30-9:15

ENGL 320:001. ARTS IN MEDICINE: EXPRESSIVE ARTS IN THE HOSPITAL SETTNG. Martin. This class introduces students of any background during the first half of the semester to various expressive arts modalities through research and in-class workshops with guest practitioners of expressive arts. The second half of the semester emphasizes the service learning part of the class: students will engage weekly with adult patients, their families, and staff in expressive arts experiences at Piedmont Medical Center. These experiences range from reading to patients and helping them journal to inviting patients to participate in crafts as well as drawing and painting. MW 3:30-4:45.

ENGL 325. DRAMATIC LITERATURE. Neary.  The Irish Dramatic Movement may well be a phrase that is steeped in redundancy, since drama in Ireland has been known to extend well beyond the stage.  This course will take a close look at ten representative Irish plays, including works by Yeats, Synge, O'Casey, Beckett, Friel, and others, with an eye on the role and influence of historical and cultural developments in the lives of the playwrights, the productions, and the plays themselves.  Students will write a series of brief response papers, present new perspectives to the rest of the class, write three short tests and a final exam, and finish with a longer paper that examines composition or performance. Students will have the opportunity to participate in activities associated with the ACIS Regional Conference held at Winthrop in early March. TR 3:30-4:45

ENGL 431, 432, 433. ACADEMIC INTERNSHIPS IN ENGLISH. These courses allow students academic credit for supervised application of skills learned in the major. Students register for these courses after arrangements have been made with their advisors and have been approved by the chair. Prerequisites: 12 hours of ENGL (incl. ENGL 300) and successful completion of CRTW 201, a 2.5. GPA, and permission of the department chair. See Dr. Naufftus.

ENGL 491. DEPARTMENTAL SEMINAR. Richardson. This course assesses student mastery of English coursework. Students complete several assessment measures--including content knowledge tests, an essay test, and the Senior Opinionaire. Although the tests are individually graded, students receive an S or U for the course. The results are then summarized anonymously and used to improve instruction in the English Department. Prerequisite: Should be taken in the first semester of the senior year (after the student has completed 90 hours). MW 12:30-1:45.